Tracing a Red Thread: Synchronicity and Jung's Red Book

Abstract

The Red Book, or Liber Novus, is C. G. Jung's personal journal that he wrote to document his inner exploration from 1913 to 1925. It is the magnum opus from which Jung formulated all his theories and to which he returned for study the rest of his life. It has recently been published by W. W. Norton, edited by Sonu Shamdasani and translated by Dr. Shamdasani, Mark Kyburtz, and John Peck. This is the third book published by the Philemon Foundation, whose mission it is to raise funds to support the publication of all of C. G. Jung's unpublished writings. This article traces my personal involvement as an early member of the Philemon Foundation through the scanning of The Red Book in Zurich in November 2008. Synchronicities surrounded many of the events, indicating the involvement of the archetype of the Self. A discussion of the nature of these occurrences and their meaning is included, along with a detailed description of the events at the scanning of The Red Book. Dreams were collected during that special week from many in the participating group and are included in this paper. I amplify my dreams as a way to document the impact on my psyche, while leaving the rest to speak for themselves. The amplifications weave a personal experience of the theories Jung developed through his own descent into the underworld, which was carefully illustrated in his Red Book.